


Sister Gem

by theothernovelist



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Gen, Microfic, the Crystal Gems
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-06
Updated: 2015-05-06
Packaged: 2018-03-29 06:09:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,286
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3885295
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theothernovelist/pseuds/theothernovelist
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Pearl and Amethyst have a heart-to-heart in the temple</p>
            </blockquote>





	Sister Gem

“ _What_ is going on in here?”

Steven and Amethyst froze as Pearl burst through the front door, visibly flustered and brandishing her spear.

“We just…uh…” Steven began, shamefully lowering his mother’s sword, which he’d been playing with.

“Busted,” Amethyst muttered under her breath, dropping the sword she’d stolen from Pearl’s room to the floor.

“I thought I heard fighting; I thought you were in danger!” Pearl said, putting away her weapon. “But this! This is unacceptable!”

“Come on, P, we were just playing around,” Amethyst said, looking down.

“How could you do something so dangerous? Steven could have been hurt! I’m severely disappointed in you, Amethyst.”

“It was Steven’s stupid idea! How come I’m the one in trouble? How come it’s not _me_ who might get hurt? I’m sick of you always getting on to me like this!” Amethyst shouted, drawing her whip suddenly and using it to take out a leg of the coffee table.

“I’m always getting on to you because you’re constantly behaving irresponsibly,” Pearl said, surprisingly calm given Amethyst’s sudden fit of rage. “Just last week you and Steven nearly got yourselves killed just crossing the street!”

“Well why isn’t _he_ in trouble?” Amethyst demanded, pointing at Steven. “Why doesn’t he have to be responsible?”

“Amethyst!” Pearl was taken aback, now. “Steven is a child!”

“Yeah well…” Amethyst said, her voice breaking. “…well so am I!” She tried to suppress a sob as she turned and ran to the temple door, quickly disappearing inside.

“Oh dear,” Pearl said quietly. She turned to see Steven standing with tears in his eyes. “Steven,” she said, kneeling to caress his face. “She didn’t mean anything against you. I just need to go and talk to her.”

“Okay,” Steven said, sniffling. “Is she okay?”

Pearl sighed and tried to smile. “Can you just try and get some of this cleaned up, please?” she asked. “I can help you later, and Garnet should be home soon.”

“Okay.”

“Good boy,” Pearl said. She tried to smile again, patted Steven on the head, and went into the temple. She made her way slowly through Amethyst’s room, which was stacked high with trash and junk and a variety of stuff she’d been accumulating over the years. For the longest time, Pearl couldn’t understand why she wanted to live this way, until one day she’d seen a very young Amethyst crawl into a small opening she’d carved herself in the mountain of stuff. Just like before.  Just like...the place. Lonely as it must’ve been, at least she’d felt safe. As she moved through the cliffs of clutter, Pearl soon heard muffled crying coming from behind a pile. Amethyst got suddenly quiet when she heard Pearl’s footsteps.

“Amethyst…”

“Go away.”

“Amethyst, please…”

“I said go away! I don’t want to talk to you!” There was a long pause, after that.

“What do you want, Amethyst?” Pearl said softly, gently.

“I want…” she replied, in a shaky voice, “I want… _my mom_.”

“What?”

“You know what I mean!” Amethyst shouted, suddenly standing to face Pearl. She blushed and immediately sat back down next to her pile, knees to her chest, facing the ground. “You think you’re the only one who misses her. The only one who _just can’t_ go on ‘cause you’re just _so lost_ without her. Well, she was important to me, too. If it weren’t for her I wouldn’t even be here.”

“I…wha?” Pearl said, though she feared she knew exactly what Amethyst meant.

“Don’t even pretend you’d have kept me if she hadn’t been there. Don’t even pretend that you and Garnet wouldn’t have destroyed me on the spot in the kindergarten if you had the chance. You think I was too little to remember? Well, I do. You drew your weapons, both of you. She’s the one who picked me up, she’s the one who wanted to take me home. Rose was the only reason either of you had anything to do with me, and now she’s gone.”

“Amethyst…” Pearl stepped forward cautiously, and sat down on a packing crate on the edge of the junk pile behind Amethyst. She didn’t protest, so Pearl reached out hesitantly and ran her fingers through Amethyst’s hair, like she always had done to Steven when he was a baby. Like Rose had done to Amethyst, so very long ago.

“We were scared, Amethyst.” Pearl said, her voice breaking. “There’d been a war. We’d just seen thousands of our own kind killing and being killed. When we went to…to that place…we weren’t expecting to see anything, or anyone. When we saw you, we were _afraid_. But Rose, Rose wasn’t afraid. She saw you, and well, she saw you for what you really were. You…you were a _baby_ , Amethyst. Rose could see that.  

 "So, what you remember, it’s true. We drew our weapons against you. We tried to convince Rose to leave you behind. But what you don’t seem to remember is how soon we realized how wrong we were. You were so…cute.” Pearl chuckled softly through the tears welling up in her eyes. “And, believe it or not, you were _sweet_. You brought out the best in her, the mother in her. Having you around brought out the best in all of us. So, yes. When we first found you in…the kindergarten, we were afraid of you. But we loved you every moment after that.” Amethyst turned slightly to lay her head in Pearl’s lap. Her face seemed to have visibly aged downward, giving her some of that childlike aspect she’d had until shortly before Steven was born. They sat in silence for a moment, Pearl gently stroking Amethyst’s hair. Pearl dropped her hand to her side as Amethyst buried her face, but Amethyst immediately grabbed it and placed it back on her own head. Pearl smiled and continued running her fingers through her hair.

“Why did she abandon me, Pearl?” Amethyst said suddenly, her voice barely audible. “How could she think I don’t need her?”

“Oh, Amethyst,” Pearl said. She slid off the crate to the floor, letting Amethyst rest her head on her shoulder. “She never meant to abandon you.”

“So why did she?”

“I…I don’t think she thought of it that way. I know it seems like…” Pearl’s voice trailed off. “We had a conversation, Rose and I, before Steven was born,” she continued after a moment. “She was so…happy. And I didn’t understand it. How could she possibly have wanted to give up her very life for a human child? She told me that she wanted Steven more than anything. That she knew what it was like to love as a mother loves, and it was worth it all to feel like that again. She wanted that for herself, and for Greg, and for us, I think. She didn’t abandon us, Amethyst, not really. She…”

“I know.” Amethyst said, cutting Pearl off. “I know she didn’t mean it…I—“ she stopped suddenly, as they both noticed a sniffling sound around the corner.

“Steven?” Pearl called out, and the little boy stepped into view.

“Hey, little man,” Amethyst said, trying to sound chipper as she wiped tears from her eyes. “How long you been standing there?”

“Uh…kinda the whole time,” he said shakily, stepping forward. Pearl and Amethyst exchanged worried glances.

“Listen, Steven…” Amethyst began, “uh…” She was cut off when Steven rushed forward and hugged her, dropping to his knees. The three of them sat there for a moment, in a huddle on the floor.

“Pearl?” Steven said suddenly, loudly enough that it startled the Gems.

“Yes, Steven?”

“How come you never told me I had a sister?”


End file.
